The present invention relates to a weld nut.
When a weld nut was welded to an iron plate, as shown in FIGS. 6 and 7, the weld nut was fastened in a state where a gap of approximately 0.05 mm to 0.1 mm was produced between the weld nut main body and the iron plate. In particular, in a case of automobile parts and the like, when assembly was performed by coupling and bolting a part having been welded in a fashion as shown in FIGS. 6 and 7, and another part together, a problem occurred such that a water leak such as a rain water leak occurred through a gap between the weld nut and the iron plate.
In order to solve such a problem in the prior art, attempts were made to prevent a water leak by modifying the welding part to have a ring shaped weld projection as shown in FIGS. 8 and 9, or by applying, after welding, a sealing agent to a contact portion of the welded nut as shown in FIGS. 10 and 11. However, in the case of the ring-shaped weld projection, an expensive welder must be used because of welding difficulties. In addition, in the case of the sealing agent, a process for applying the sealing agent thereto is required, thereby causing problems including high costs.
The present invention is made to solve such prior art problems. The present invention successfully allows a weld nut and an iron plate to be fixed together in a closely and tightly fitting fashion such that a groove is provided in the vicinity of a weld projection, in particular, around the weld projection, whereby extra metal materials on the weld nut can enter thereinto during welding so that gaps will be eliminated.
An object of the present invention is to weld the weld nut to the iron plate in a closely and tightly fitting fashion without forming a gap between the iron plate and the nut. Another object of the present invention is to provide weld nuts allowing a welding operation to be performed between the weld nut and the iron plate in a tightly fitting fashion with low-cost methods free from using an expensive welder or performing a sealing operation.
The present invention relates to weld nuts each having at least a groove in the vicinity of a weld projection. The weld nut of the present invention is characterized in that the groove in the vicinity of the weld projection is arranged on the circumference of the weld projection. The weld nut of the present invention is characterized in that the groove is continuous. The weld nut of the present invention is characterized in that the groove is adjacent to the weld projection. The weld nut of the present invention is characterized in that the cross-sectional shape of the groove is trapezoidal. The weld nut of the present invention is characterized in that the planar shape of the weld projection is roughly rectangular. The weld nut of the present invention is characterized in that the planar shape of the weld projection is slightly arc-shaped. The weld nut of the present invention is characterized in that the cross-sectional shape of the weld projection is roughly triangular. The weld nut of the present invention is characterized in that a plurality of weld projections are provided. For the weld nut of the present invention, it is preferable that the groove provided in the vicinity of the weld projection is isolated from a void opening on the central axis side through which a screw axis, a bolt shank or the like for screwing, etc., is inserted.
Advantages
According to the present invention, the extra metal material on the weld nut is guided into the groove during welding, thereby allowing welding operations to be performed in a closely and tightly fitted manner.